The use of reusable shipping containers has become a practice in industry for several reasons. First, reusable containers are sturdy and provide a high level of protection to shipped items compared to the customary, corrugated fiberboard containers. Second, the lifetime cost per use is generally less for a reusable shipping container. Third, environmental considerations weigh in favor of reusable containers which require less frequent replacement and offer various recycling options.
Return shipments of collapsible reusable shipping containers to the originating shipper are more economical and efficient than non-collapsible units. Collapsing the shipping container to a fraction of its erected size allows a more dense load to be shipped, as it may cost no more to ship three to four times the number of collapsed containers than to ship a lesser number in an erected condition. This is particularly true if the freight charge is calculated, not by weight, but either on a truck load basis or on a set volume of freight.
For those items requiring individual packaging during shipment and handling, collapsible shipping containers as previously designed have not been an advantageous choice. A major problem with current collapsible shipping containers is the separate interior dunnage itself, dividers and separators. This has been true whether shipment is made to assembly operations, between locations within a single facility, or over distances as from a supplier to a manufacturer.
One handling problem with conventional dunnage is that the dunnage or internal packaging must be removed from a shipping container and disassembled or collapsed separately, or it becomes an obstacle and interferes with the collapsing of the collapsible shipping container. Once removed, the conventional dunnage is no longer a part of the container assembly, requires separate handling, shipment and accounting and, further, is subject to loss or damage. Thus, the advantages of the collapsible, reusable shipping container for shipments of unpackaged items diminish with the handling requirements for the currently designed separate dunnage. Moreover, once removed and shipped as a separate item, dunnage consumes space in the return shipment and reduces return shipment efficiencies.
Dunnage in the form of corrugated fiberboard orthogonally interdigitated dividers, left assembled and collapsed, typically collapse to a dimension larger than the footprint of its collapsible shipping container and create additional handling problems. Completely disassembled, these dividers compound the problem of return shipment and require disassembly and re-assembly labor. In the instance of conductive or conductively coated dunnage for shipment of electronic circuit boards and circuits having electrostatic discharge sensitive components, separate handling of the collapsed interlocked dunnage tends to degrade those properties which are responsible for protection against electrostatic discharge damage to electronic circuit boards.
These and other shortcomings can prevent efficient and cost effective use of collapsible reusable shipping containers for shipping fragile items requiring separation and protection from incidental contact during shipping and handling.